"The US Patents and Trademark Office has today made public a Microsoft patent application (serial no. 240,729) related to the graphical user interface found on the hotly anticipated Windows Phone 7 Series mobile OS. Filed in September 2008, this application describes a 'contiguous background' that extends beyond the dimensions of the screen (either vertically or horizontally, but not both) with anchored 'mixed-media' elements being littered atop it - all of which is to be served on a 'media-playing device'. That should sound pretty familiar, given that it's the central navigational concept of both Windows Phone 7 and the Zune HD, and as such it makes a lot of sense for Microsoft to seek to legally protect its uniqueness."